


Aftermath

by throwaway556



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 09:53:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29062392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/throwaway556/pseuds/throwaway556
Summary: Set right after the end of the Great Gum War. Marceline struggles to help Simon come to grips with his situation while reassuring herself everything will work out for the best. Starts out a bit depressing, attempts to be wholesome in the end.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Aftermath

He was back. She should feel relieved. But she couldn’t. Not when he was like this.  
He was a mess. Nothing like his cheery, optimistic self. His anguish filled the battlefield. If one stumbled on the scene now, it would look like he was the only one who was suffering.  
She flew next to him and flung her arms around him. She tried to dry his tears, but more kept coming. She gently placed her hand at the base of his neck and guided his head into her shoulder. She couldn’t stop the pain, but she could be there for him during it.  
When she caught him falling, it took her a minute to process that he was back. In the fleeting seconds between her recognition and his despair, she made herself a promise. She would protect him from everything. She would keep him safe and happy at all costs. After all, this was the man who saved her, who raised her, who protected her, who loved her.  
When she was little, he would, and often did anything for her. He would find food for them, and make sure she got most of it. She would catch him secretly scraping food off of his plate if he felt like she wasn’t getting enough. He did a good job masking his hunger with his humor, but his body which grew deathly skinny at times was a terrible liar.  
She would catch him watching her while she slept. She would beg him to get some sleep and he promised he would- he just needed to make sure they were alone for a little longer. Of course, he would stay awake for days at a time. He only got sleep when he was absolutely exhausted. He knew he was no good to her dead.  
He would use himself as live bait if he needed. She liked exploring. She would pretend she was a tour guide or a famous musician and show Hambo around. More often than not, she would attract unwanted attention – starving animals, mutants, and other unimaginable horrors. But he always came to her rescue. He would make as much noise as possible. He made earnest attempts to not use the crown because he knew it frightened her, and himself for that matter. After each time, she would expect him to get angry with her, to yell at her. Instead he hugged her. He was never mad. Even when the crown was in control, he never yelled at her back then.  
She couldn’t keep that promise, not even for a minute.  
Classic Marceline. Messing up something so simple so quickly.  
She made herself a new promise, one she hoped was more realistic. She would still try to keep him happy and safe forever. But she would be there for him in the times she couldn’t too. And this was one of those times, one she was all too familiar with. He was heart-broken.  
Most of the stragglers left them alone. Many gave their sympathies for his situation- Finn and King Man in particular showed their support. For a minute, Simon would stop crying. He would return from the brink to the Simon she knew. He would thank them and assure them he would be alright. They would smile and leave. After he was satisfied that they were gone, he dropped his façade and allowed his misery to take over again.  
Classic Simon. Putting the needs of others above his own.  
He didn’t try to put on a mask for her. He had made her a promise a long time ago. No matter how bad things got, he would be honest with her.  
Hours passed. It was getting dark and it would be below freezing soon. Normally, she wouldn’t mind this. She didn’t get cold anymore, and she liked the dark.  
But she had her crying adoptive father in her arms. His face was stained with tears and his clothing was soaking wet. If it were up to her, she would stay with him here as long as he needed. Days could go by and she wouldn’t complain. But he was already fighting through a broken heart, fatigue, and so much more. He didn’t need to add hypothermia to the list.  
She rose. She reached down and picked him up by the waist. She triple checked that he was secured in her arms and that he wasn’t uncomfortable. Then she took off.  
Her door was locked. She kicked it down. It would be a pain to fix later, but later didn’t matter yet. She ignored the couch normally used for overnight guests and flew up the stairs with him. She pushed into her bedroom. She gently lowered him into her bad and swaddled him in her blanket.  
She exited the room and quietly shut the door. Then she slumped down against it. Was she doing all she could? When she was upset, he had calmed her so effortlessly. It didn’t matter if she had scrapped a knee, ripped Hambo, or remembered her mom. He always dropped everything he was doing. He would try to make her laugh. He sung her songs. He would do everything to make her smile and temporarily forget the pain.  
She listened. The sobbing was replaced by snoring. He was asleep, good. He had gone through a lot today. More than some people go through in a life time.  
A flash of realization hit her like a bag of bricks and she became sick to her stomach. He was back to being himself. Simon Petrikov, the human, Simon Petrikov, the mortal.  
Sure, she could keep him safe. She could kill anything that even looked in his general direction in a way she didn’t like. She could make sure he never had to walk again- he could fly air Marceline forever if he wanted. She had enough gold stockpiled to buy him anything— almost anything—he could want. But she couldn’t keep him safe from time.  
She wept. Cried for his grief. Cried for Betty’s sacrifice. She didn’t know her, but Simon loved her— and that was all that mattered. She cried for his mortality. That one day, he would be forced to leave her alone again.  
No. She needed to be strong now. She couldn’t help him like this. If anything, he would think he did something that upset her and he would become even worse. She dried her eyes and shut them. She went through a lot today too.

A week went by. Simon was still grieving, but had a twinkle in his eyes. He had a plan. She shouldn’t be surprised. She would never admit it to Bubblegum, but he was the smartest person she knew. Not that Bubblegum wasn’t impressive. But he had figured out time travel, something she admitted that she could never hope to replicate, and he had been on his deathbed.  
Maybe everything would turn out alright. He would eventually rescue Betty, and they could figure out a way to keep the pair safe from time. Maybe he knew a ritual, or Bonnie could grow replacement organs. If it came down to it, she would turn him. It was selfish, but she deserved to be a little selfish for all she had been through. And he deserved a chance to live life as himself. She made herself a third promise. To find a way to keep him with her.  
Simon was maniac in his work. He was putting supplies together. Food, clothing, bags. Was he going camping? He assured her he would be back in two days’ time. That he didn’t need her to worry about him. But he wouldn’t let her follow him either. That stung. She needed to keep him safe, but she also wanted to respect his wishes.  
Then he left. She tried distracting herself. She went on a date with Bonnie. She hung out with Finn and Jake. She helped repair damaged parts of the Candy Kingdom. She practiced her music. She even flipped through the books Simon had been staring over. But she was still worried.  
Two days came and went. Then another two. She was at her wits end. Had something happened to him? Had she already failed to keep her new promises? Anger reared its head. Had he gotten himself hurt? Did he not want to upset her with his grieving?  
The door opened. She saw the trademark poofy hair and crashed into him with a bear hug. Her worry and anger vanished. He came back, and that was all that mattered. She looked up into his eyes. Emptiness. Despair. Whatever his plan was, it had failed. She walked him to her couch and sat him down. This time he didn’t cry. He was on autopilot. She knew when the realization hit him, he would grieve again. And she would be ready to support him again. So much for everything turning out alright.

Another week passed. Simon was still recovering from his recent defeat. At the very least, he was always happy when she entered the room. Happy to have someone he loved in his life. He didn’t want to put Marceline through anymore of his sadness. He wouldn’t try to hide it from her, but for her sake he was going to recover. Every so often, his hands would play with a small cube. He was always careful not to press the middle of it.  
Marceline took notice. She saw that cube somewhere long ago. One day she remembered. It was a key to the time room. Simon had visited Prismo! He must have tried to wish for Betty, and judging from her absence, Prismo couldn’t deliver. But now Marceline had a plan. Simon couldn’t get Betty back, but now she knew how to keep Simon with her forever.  
She waited for nightfall. She snuck into his bag and grabbed the cube. She flew outside and squeezed the middle. A small portal opened up, and she walked through.  
The time room hadn’t changed at all. It was a couple hundred years since she had been here before. Ironically, she visited then in attempt to save Simon from the crown. Prismo couldn’t deliver back then either. So much for an all-powerful being.  
“Marceline you’re back! Its only been a few hundro years! Finally think of a good wish? I bet its musical in nature.”  
“Hey Prismo. No. I have a wish, but it has to do with Simon again.”  
“I’m sorry, like I told him, I can’t bring Betty back from—”  
“It isn’t about Betty.”  
She hesitated. Would Simon hold this against her? He could have wished for immortality himself. She could think of a million ways to justify this. It would give him more time to look for a way to get Betty back. It would give him more time with her, and for himself. It would give him time to move on.  
“Hey Prismo. Can- can you make someone immortal?”  
“I see where this is going. The short answer is I can’t make Simon immortal Marceline.”  
She froze. Her plan smashed into smithereens in an instant. First there was shame and anguish, quickly replaced by anger.  
“Oh, come on! You say you’re an all-powerful being but you can’t do jack! You can’t bring Betty back, you couldn't cure Simon of the crown, you can’t even grant immortality?! What’s with all those warnings you give about wishes being dangerous and super powerful if you can’t actually do anything with them?!”  
“Calm down, please. I didn’t say I couldn’t grant immortality. I said I can’t grant Simon immortality.”  
“Why not?!”  
“I can’t give him something he already has.”  
She stopped like a panicked dear being frozen alive by a forty-seven-year-old man. Simon would never have wished himself to be immortal. Not with his experience, and certainly not with his selflessness. He would wish for the cure for a disease, or for a way to solve hunger or something.  
“Simon would never wish for that.”  
“You’re right, in fact he didn’t wish for anything after I couldn’t bring back Betty.”  
“So—so how is he immortal? The crown? Is he going to be crazy again?!”  
“No. he will never revert to that personality again. Heck, he'll never lose his memories again either. But he is immortal because of a wish made with the crown.”  
“Betty?”  
“Yeah. The crown only grants the deepest wish of the user. Betty’s was to keep Simon safe. I explained last time you were here that wish magic can have dire monkey-paw consequences if worded improperly. Safe is not a specific word. It has no beginning or end. No lower or upper limit.”  
“But it turned her into Golb! That’s enough of a monkeys-paw!”  
“Her fusing with Golb was only part of the wish. That part was needed for Golb to leave Ooo and to keep him safe in the heat of the moment. But like I said, she didn’t define safe.”  
“So the crown also gave him immortality?”  
“No. Betty is giving him immortality. She fused with the literal embodiment and controller of entropy. She’s the most powerful being in the multiverse. She’s keeping the entropy away from him.”  
“I don’t understand.”  
“I don’t blame you. Look, the important thing is this. For as long as she’s around, which will be forever, Simon won’t age or get sick or forget things, or anything like that. Actually, it’s kind of funny. You see she’s keeping her perception of Simon safe. So, like, he won’t physically change from what she perceives him to be. No new facial hair, no nails growing or teeth falling out. No acne or anything. Man, it’s a good thing her perception of him was before he put on the crown. Could you imagine if she perceived him as the Ice King or as like a teenager? Who in their right mind would want to be a teenager forever? That would be messed up.”  
“Yeah. It would be.”  
“Sorry, didn’t mean to offend you with that.”  
“Its ok. So, he won’t get hurt or anything either?”  
“No. He can still get hurt. She can only keep entropy- time and stuff- from not affecting him. The crown's magic should keep him from getting sick. But, he could still be done in by like a falling rock or some mean guy with a pointy stick.”  
“So, I can still protect him…”  
“If you want, sure.”  
“Prismo I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier. I’ve just been so caught up with everything you know? Anyway, I have another wish. I don’t know if you can grant it, but I want to try anyway.”

Marceline returned through the portal. A minute hadn’t passed. She went back inside and quietly checked on Simon. Fast asleep, but beginning to stir.  
“Betty…”  
She took his sleep mumbling to mean her wish worked. She pulled over a chair sat down and watched him the rest of the night.  
She woke up with arms around her. Her first instinct was to attack. Luckily, this was replaced once she realized it was Simon.  
She hugged him back harder. She let him cry and said nothing. These were tears of joy.  
“How can I ever make this up to you?”  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She tried playing coy. It didn’t work  
“Betty told me everything Marcy. The time room, the immortality, your wish…”  
“You two deserve to see each other. Maybe you can get better at astral projection and do it whenever you want instead of just when you sleep. I’m just sorry that I could only do that much.”  
“Only?! Are you kidding me? Marceline I was so caught up in bringing her back I didn’t even think of other possibilities. You were creative enough to see this solution. Because of her I can go to sleep as myself every night for the rest of time. Because of you, it will be worth it. I can see her, speak with her, hold her…”  
“Hey don’t tell me it wouldn’t be worth living if you just had me during the day!”  
“What? No- I didn’t mean- I’m—”  
“Relax Simon, I’m just kidding. I know you love me. Besides. I need to fess up. I went to Prismo to wish for you to have immortality. I didn't consider if you would be happy or not... I just couldn’t stand the thought of losing you again.”  
“I would have done the same thing Marcy. ”  
“Anyway Simon, you should feel lucky. Now you know you have two all-powerful women protecting your butt. No one will ever mess with you.”  
“Yeah. Just promise me you won’t go overboard okay? I know you’re strong but I can protect myself too.”  
“Last time I checked, only one of us has super strength, invisibility, flight, shapeshifting…”  
“Okay, okay I get it. You win in a fight hands down no doubt about that. But seriously Marcy, don’t feel like you need to protect me forever. You have your own life and your own love to protect.”  
“I uh, I don’t—”  
“Marcy you’ve always been a terrible liar. That tone of voice, that blush. And you were pretty bad at hiding it in the crown. When were you going to tell me?”  
“I was going to bring her over when you stopped grieving. I didn’t want to make it look like I was waving a relationship in your face.”  
“Please don’t feel the need to hide it from me. I’ve been there. You're in love. It sucks to hide it. Besides, if you’re dating, I should get to know her for real, right?”  
“Just promise not to kidnap her. I’ll have to beat you up.”  
“I promise.”  
“Another thing. Simon, promise me you won’t leave me again. No dying or leaving me for my own good. Not when I can actually protect you.”  
“I promise Marcy. You’ll see me as often as you want.”


End file.
